Air pollution is a growing problem in most cities (big and small). The "Daily Dose" aims to disseminate the best available information on air pollution and engage in discussions to better understand the process of air quality management. For more details on the program, please visit http://www.urbanemissions.info

Saturday, December 28, 2013

Vending Machines Renting Smart-Car Like EV Cars in China for $3.25 per Hour

China's cities are blanketed by toxic haze with air pollution that can shut down
places like Beijing. Of course, there are many citizens who want to
move from a scooter to a car, but that could create more pollution. In
steps carsharing, and an idea from Kandi Technologies Group that its small electric vehicles could be part of the solution in the city of Hangzhou, an hour-long train ride from Shanghai.

Kandi produces a small, Smart-car
like EV that can go 75 miles on a charge and reach a top speed of 50
miles per hour. Seems like boilerplate EV territory, right? Except that
they're being stored in vending machine-like parking garages and can be
rented for $3.25 per hour. See for yourself in the video below by filmmaker Aaron Rockett.

Through its joint venture
with Geely Automotive, Kandi plans to build 750 (!) of these garages in
Hangzhou over the next four years. This will be supported by the
government and Kandi's 50-50 joint venture with Geely Automotive. Kandi
wins, too, since it could supply up to 100,000 EVs to serve carsharers.
If things work well in Hangzhou, this business model could spread to
other Chinese cities and regions such as Shanghai, Shandong and Hainan.

Geely and Kandi started their joint venture early in 2013 with an
initial investment of one billion yuan (about $160 million US). The idea
has been to research, develop, produce and market EVs together, and the
car-vending machine project could play an important role in where the
companies go from here.